ASCLS 2011 Comes to Atlanta
I have been involved in meeting planning before, but this last weekend I was honored to be part of a group meeting in Atlanta to plan the 2011 ASCLS national meeting. First, Atlanta is a very accessible city, easy to get to and is interesting in its own right as a unique mix of laid-back southern charm and modern city.
The group toured the hotel and convention center and looked at everything from proximity to each other to the layout of the rooms. The meeting rooms have to be large enough to accommodate the expected attendance, and close enough to each other so attendees do not have to walk too far between sessions. 
In addition to having a variety of AV needs to accommodate various types of presentations, they must be ADA accessible and fairly sound proof. Same thing with the sleeping rooms -- not to mention attractive and secure.
In selecting the program itself the group deliberated used a variety of brainstorming and Delphi-like analyses. They had to narrow down the list of programs and even select a branded theme and logo for the program.
From hundreds of proposals submitted, the program had to be developed to honor time constraints, represent all disciplines and presented at the right level of complexity (intermediate or advanced only). In addition, speakers were selected for expertise in the subject and even their geographical location.
After all that hard work, the selected speakers had to be contacted to get their acceptance and agreement to speak under specified contracted conditions.
But we also had fun, sampling some of the local cuisine and taking in the local sights and sounds. There is lots of work to be done between now and July 2011. But our job is to take care of all the details so that it appears to you that everything just came together naturally.
ASCLS 2011 in Atlanta July 26-30 will be a phenomenal blend of learning, fun, food and excitement. There is much more to come. Y'all stay tuned.